NEW RULES WILL APPLY ON TEARA REPEATERS

The rules are printed completely below, and
there’s lots in them. But the attention has zeroed in on paragraph (a)(3) of 97.113,
the FCC’s version of “Thou Shalt Not’s.” The line stirring up all the fuss is simple:
“No amateur station shall transmit communications in which the station licensee or
control operator has a pecuniary interest, including communications on behalf of an
employer.”

But the really hot stuff isn’t even in the rules!
What’s “pecuniary interest?” MONEY. But which way should the money not flow?
The rules really don’t say, but in commentary published with the rules, and in press
releases and QST Editorials, the FCC and the ARRL have made it clear: It’s now
OK to conduct personal business on Amateur Radio.

Whew, I got through it. Never thought I’d see
my fingers type that. OK, what kind of business? Again, the rules don’t say, and the
FCC declined an ARRL request to be more specific. One thing is clear—you CAN’T
use ham radio for your own business, or your employer. That’s still a big fat NO-NO,
so you CAN’T call in to work to say you’ll be late. Some of the examples I’ve read
of calls you CAN make include making a motel reservation, checking on a doctor
appointment, and (ugh) ordering a pizza.

All this stuff is targeted pretty directly at
autopatch, and you may be wondering what TEARA has in mind for it’s patches?
Here it is, indented and with little numbers next to each point to make them stand
out:

1 -- We don’t want the club repeaters to become poor-man’s cellular phone systems.

2 -- “Business” type communication has a very low priority, and should NOT
get in the way of other traffic. It’s pretty simple. You CAN use the TEARA
patches to check on that doctor’s appointment, but you shouldn’t do it a lot. We
don’t expect much of that traffic (it’s been legal for over 10 days as this is written,
and I haven’t hear the first “business” call yet). But if it gets to crowding regular
repeater traffic, the control operators have been authorized to limit it.

So it’s LEGAL. But is that “business” call a good
idea? If you’ve used autopatch, you know how difficult it can be to really communicate
with someone who isn’t used to the idea of “simplex” radio conversation. People on
the phone are used to answering quickly, and they’re used to interrupting (you are too,
when you’re on the phone, so don’t feel so smug). That doesn’t work on the patch, and
you’ve heard the confusion. Think twice.

Now, here are the new rules, per the FCC:
Section 97.113 is revised to read as follows:

97.113 Prohibited transmissions.

(a) No amateur station shall transmit:

(1) Communications specifically prohibited elsewhere in this Part;

(2) Communications for hire or for material compensation, direct or indirect, paid
or promised, except as otherwise provided in these rules;

(3) Communications in which the station licensee or control operator has a pecuniary
interest, including communications on behalf of an employer. Amateur operators
may, however, notify other amateur operators of the availability for sale or trade
of apparatus normally used in an amateur station, provided that such activity is
not conducted on a regular basis;

(4) Music using a phone emission except as specifically provided elsewhere in this
Section communications intended to facilitate a criminal act; messages in codes or
ciphers intended to obscure the meaning thereof, except as otherwise provided
herein; obscene or indecent words or language; or false or deceptive messages,
signals or identification;

(5) Communications, on a regular basis, which could reasonably be furnished
alternatively through other radio services.

(b) An amateur station shall not engage in any form of broadcasting, nor may an
amateur station transmit one-way communications except as specifically provided
in these rules; nor shall an amateur station engage in any activity related to program
production or news gathering for broadcasting purposes, except that communications
directly related to the immediate safety of human life or the protection of property
may be provided by amateur stations to broadcasters for dissemination to the public
where no other means of communication is reasonably available before or at
the time of the event.

(c) A control operator may accept compensation as an incident of a teaching
position during periods of time when an amateur station is used by that teacher
as a part of classroom instruction at an educational institution.

(d) The control operator of a club station may accept compensation for the
periods of time when the station is transmitting telegraphy practice or
information bulletins, provided that the station transmits such telegraphy practice
and bulletins for at least 40 hours per week; schedules operations on at least
six amateur service MF and HF bands using reasonable measures to
maximize coverage; where the schedule of normal operating times
and frequencies is published at least 30 days in advance of the actual
transmissions; and where the control operator does not accept any
direct or indirect compensation for any other service as a control operator.

(e) No station shall retransmit programs or signals emanating from any type
of radio station other than an amateur station, except propagation and weather
forecast information intended for use by the general public and originated from
United States Government stations and communications, including incidental
music, originating on United States Government frequencies between a
space shuttle and its associated Earth stations. Prior approval for shuttle
retransmissions must be obtained from the National Aeronautics and Space
Administration. Such retransmissions must be for the exclusive use of amateur
operators. Propagation, weather forecasts, and shuttle retransmissions
may not be conducted on a regular basis, but only occasionally, as an
incident of normal amateur radio communications.